Alexander's Gift

The Soldier- 6

Mary. What a nice girl . . . his parents liked her despite her being an actress- but then again, it really shouldn't have been such a surprise to him because he had been able to see she was so much more than just your average, long-legged beauty.

She proved to be a much needed refuge for him . . . Dick struggled to think of an adequate comparison. It came to him in a few moments- ah, yes . . . it was like searching for a GI blanket on a cold night, and the feelings of utter security and safety you get when you've found it. Like you don't need anything else in life.

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The lobby wasn't so crowded that afternoon at the bank as it usually was, so that as Dick was on his way out of the building he paused to  admire it as if for the first time. The few people that did populate the spacious area were strolling quickly and without regard to anyone else there, making sharp turns to avoid another person as if there was an invisible force field around them. The marble seemed to swim in the light like still water, and shuttered sun fell in stripes across the walls like bright yellow paint. The whole scene made Dick feel very small all of a sudden. 

As Dick squared his shoulders and straightened his tie to recover from staring around like a grinning idiot, he accidentally locked eyes with a young man briskly striding past him, and his whole body went rigid, mouth agape and brows up in disbelief as though someone had just dashed a cup of cold water in his face without reason. He glimpsed the blond locks of swideswept hair bleached by the sun; the intently glimmering blue eyes narrowed at the corners with focus.

Abruptly, even though the boy had passed out of sight, it was all he could see- the youthful insolence that curled the corner of his lips and brought the spark of flame to those crystal eyes. Dick could hear Hunter's words more clearly than the clock striking four o'clock.

"Sir, are you alright??" No, that wasn't something Hunter would say. "Sir, what's wrong?" The voice pierced Dick's consciousness again, except this time it was most definitely not Hunter's- it was a woman's!

All at once Dick blinked, and his view of the lobby returned- only he was gazing up at the crystal chandelier mounted from the ceiling, and there were several people leaning over him. Frowning in confusion, Dick sat up, head throbbing with each pound of his heart. "What happened?" 

"You fainted, sir," A woman responded, the receptionist who was a voluminous blond and clueless to everything but her work, "One minute you went all pale like you'd seen a ghost, and the next you were on the floor."

Dick wiped the sweat from his brow with a trembling hand, a hot flush rising to his cheeks. "I'm sorry . . . I'm not feeling very well." Not wanting for anyone to ask any more questions, Dick scrambled to his feet in spite of the unsteadiness that came over him right away.

With that, he hurried away on wobbly legs, only a single face in his mind.

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Dick flipped the page of the mystery novel he was reading, pleased at the crisp sound it made to soften the silence that had fallen over the bedroom. He was perfectly satisfied to sit there silently beside Mary in bed, already accustomed to her presence after only two months of marriage.

"Dick?" Mary piped up softly, but with a probing edge to her tone that made him glance up from his book. "What is it, dear?"

"Well . . ." She swallowed nervously, hands smoothing down the sheets draped over her legs, "Do you feel like . . . like there's something missing in our marriage?" Dick just stared at her in uncomprehending surprise, to him those words coming out of the blue. Folding her hands primly in her lap with the restrained frustration at his lack of understanding, Mary began again, "I mean, it just feels so . . . casual between us- when was the last time you took me out to dinner or we just watched the stars together and had a romantic time?" Her voice tapered off in strong emotion, obviously having more to say but not wanting to say it. 

"I can take you out to dinner whenever you'd like! And I didn't know you wanted to stargaze." Dick protested innocently, puzzled by this sudden outburst and thinking about how busy he'd been at work recently. He thought she knew he'd been swamped at the bank recently. 

Mary pursed her lips distastefully at his response, eyes growing furiously cold. "That's not what I'm talking about- you can't do it now that I've asked you to. That's the whole problem." She said icily, and Dick sighed wearily, snapping his book shut for good- he knew that he would not be given a chance the rest of the night to read.

He then met her steely-eyed gaze, once again with consternation, still not understanding what her problem was- he had told her that he was willing to take her out to dinner. "I don't know what you want from me, Mary. I can't exactly anticipate your every wish." Dick almost winced when he saw her reaction, knowing he had messed up, but he'd be damned if he was going to look guilty.

"Oh, of course not, Dick. You're not in my head, are you? No, don't worry about it one bit." Her voice turned frighteningly, coldly sweet, and she shifted onto her side with her back to him. Dick knew that he was certainly in trouble now- whenever a woman told you to forget this or that, you definitely were not supposed to do that.

"Come on, Mary, I really do want to know what's bothering you. I want to help!" Dick said in a soft, placating tone, lightly resting his hand on her arm. She recoiled as if he had stabbed her and just said in that same sickly sweet voice, "There's nothing to talk about. I'm going to bed." She shut the lamp off on the nightstand beside her and stayed turned away from him so he could not see her face. 

With a frustrated sigh, Dick flopped onto his back and stewed. They both lay in bed absolutely inarticulately furiously, with Dick more on the side of puzzled than furious, each wanting sympathy but refusing to give sympathy.